Microsoft Surface Mini tipped for 20 May unveiling

MICROSOFT LIKELY will announce its long-rumoured Surface Mini tablet at an event on 20 May.

Microsoft has summoned press to a "small gathering" on 20 May, where it's expected to unveil a miniature version of its Surface tablet.

Microsoft has yet to confirm specifics, saying vaguely in a statement, "We have a lot of great things that we are thinking about and working on, and there are multiple aspect ratios and sizes and awesome things to come from Surface." However, this 20 May date matches with last week's premature Amazon listing, which suggested a May launch for the Surface Mini.

While we still have over a week to wait until the Surface Mini makes its debut, we already know pretty much all there is to know about the incoming Microsoft tablet.

According to speculation, the Surface Mini will be gunning after the iPad Mini more than the Nexus 7, with the tablet tipped to feature an 8in touchscreen. Unlike Apple's tablet, this screen will boast support for a stylus, with the tablet tipped to ship with a Wacom digitizer.

Beyond its display, the Microsoft Surface Mini is expected to feature an ARM chip, which if true will mean that the tablet likely will arrive running Windows RT - despite Microsoft having tweaked Windows 8.1 to work better on small touchscreen devices.

There's also talk that the Surface Mini will boast an improved kickstand, an optional keyboard add-on and a full metal casing.

There's no word on pricing or release date yet, but we'll likely hear more on 20 May. µ